Press & News
The Public’s Radio — House commission set to look for solutions to Rhode Island’s eroding beaches
By Alex Nunez — As rising seas and stronger storms, due at least in part to climate change, are carrying off tons of sand from Rhode Island beaches, a legislative commission tasked with developing ways to slow beach erosion met at the State House for the first time on Monday.
Projo — Narragansett Town Beach made more money this year, but is it unfriendly to out-of-towners?
By Antonia Noori Farzan — Narragansett Town Beach had a profitable summer, officials said this week, while also defending themselves against charges of exclusivity.
EastBayRI — Residents consider suit over Little Compton Town Landing access
By Ruth Rasmussen — Not all happy with state's declaration that spot is open to all, not just locals.
CBS Evening News — Taxpayers bear cost of protecting high-end coastal communities from hurricanes
CBS Evening News with Norah O'Donnell — Hurricane season is nowhere near over, but already several storms have caused significant damage along the Eastern Seaboard. Taxpayers are paying a stiff price to protect high-end coastal communities from these powerful storms. Stephen Stock explains.
WRPI — Narragansett beachfront homeowners battle erosion after winter storm surge
By Elizabeth Turley, Erica Ricci — Narragansett is home to several of Rhode Island’s most picturesque beaches, but residents say a series of winter storms left their coastal homes severely damaged.
Smithsonian — Galveston’s Texas-Size Plan to Stop the Next Big Storm
By Xander Peters — In the wake of Hurricane Ike, engineers have been crafting a $34 billion plan to protect the city. Will it work when the next disaster arrives?
Rhode Island Current — Forced to submit a plan to remove illegal seawall, Quidnessett still backs water reclassification
By Nancy Lavin — Country club restoration plans appear ‘incomplete,’ says Save the Bay
Rhode Island Current — North Kingstown country club on rocky terrain in quest to keep illegal wall
By Nancy Lavin — CRMC hearing on proposal to ease water protections pits club members against environmentalists
The Public’s Radio — Judge sides with property owners in blow to new shoreline access law
By Alex Nunes — Two lawsuits are challenging a law enacted in 2023 that sets a new definition for the public trust shoreline in Rhode Island
The Public’s Radio — Contested beach parking restrictions in Narragansett aren’t going up anytime soon
By Alex Nunes — Beachgoers say time-limited parking along the seawall in Narragansett will make it harder to enjoy the town beach and make the coastal community more exclusive. State officials want more time to review the restrictions that have already been approved by the town.
Projo — Gathering seaweed is protected in RI's constitution. Here's why you should give it a try.
By Antonia Noori Farzan — Unable to afford fertilizer back in the Azores, Raymond Xavier's great-grandfather would gather seaweed and plow it into the ground…
The Public’s Radio — Newport’s only public beach is eroding. Should the city save it?
By Olivia Ebertz — As structures like the carousel and snack bar building are being demolished at Easton’s Beach, city officials are grappling with how to save an eroding beach.
The Public’s Radio — ‘That conversation is coming’: South Coast towns may consider managed retreat, green infrastructure in response to rising seas
By Luis Hernandez — Beach erosion and extreme flooding are forcing South Coast officials to think more urgently about how to adapt to a rise in sea levels. New Bedford Light reporter Adam Goldstein joins Morning Edition host Luis Hernandez to discuss the many options under consideration.
The Public’s Radio — Newport official says continued beach erosion could threaten the city’s water supply, way of life
By Luis Hernandez — “Can we renourish the beaches? Can we find a way to put back what’s been taken away over the years?” We talk with the city’s public services director about the ways Newport is grappling with the ongoing threat of coastal erosion.
The Public’s Radio — A push to further restrict driving on a local barrier beach has shoreline advocates crying ‘ruse’
By Alex Nunes — Members of Nope’s Island Conservation Association say the town of Charlestown should change a town ordinance to help prevent drivers from damaging a barrier beach. Shoreline access advocates portray the proposal as a Trojan Horse for blocking public use of the beach.
The Public’s Radio — ‘I have real concern’: URI coastal scientist tracks decades of coastal erosion data
By Luis Hernandez — Severe storms and rising sea-levels are reshaping Rhode Island’s shoreline in dramatic ways. As part of our ongoing series on coastal erosion, Morning Host Luis Hernandez spoke with J.P. Walsh, a coastal scientist at the University of Rhode Island, who is trying to quantify just how much beach we’ve lost in recent decades.
The Public’s Radio — Dude, where’s my beach?
By Alex Nunes — The summer beach season is here, but the beaches themselves look very different this year. Coastal communities are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to repair shoreline damage from last winter’s severe storms. The damage is a warning sign to Rhode Island of the tough road ahead as climate-related sea level rise and increasingly heavy storms continue to swallow up the beaches.
The Public’s Radio — Westerly beach parking bans are being called forms of ‘bigotry’
By Alex Nunes — Westerly’s Harbor Management Commission is recommending the town council begin addressing “exclusionary” parking policies in shoreline areas. An attorney for Watch Hill property interests calls suggestions of discrimination “absurd.”
The Public’s Radio — ACLU represents beach access advocate sued by Weekapaug Fire District
By Alex Nunes — The Rhode Island ACLU says the fire district’s lawsuit is targeting a Westerly resident fighting for a public shoreline right-of-way in a move to discourage public participation in the dispute.
Boston Globe — The seas are coming for coastal homes. How will communities, and the state, respond?
By Sabrina Shankman — In the age of climate change, as sea levels rise and more intense storms wear away the natural landscape that had protected coastal communities for generations, state and local officials are considering more radical measures, including paying people to abandon their waterfront properties altogether.